This invention was made under a contract with the Department of the Navy.
This invention relates to lasers and more particularly to an improved electrode assembly for a pulsed gas laser.
Maintenance or replacement of electrodes in a high-power pulsed gas laser is essential to ensure stable and efficient operation of the laser. Rapid installation and removal of the electrode to be maintained is therefore highly desirable to simplify maintenance and to minimize the down time of the laser. In the past electrodes typically have been fastened in place with screws which have served additionally as the primary areas of electrical contact. The disadvantage of screws is that they require considerable access space for both the tool (screw driver) and operator's hands. This means that (1) space must be allocated in the laser cavity for access thereby necessarily increasing the size of the laser for this purpose, (2) an access port be provided that exposes the entire length of the electrode, and/or (3) holding screws penetrate the shell of the laser. An example of a laser that illustrates the first of the above alternatives is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,240,044. The more common alternatives (2) and (3) are illustrated in an article entitled "An Injection-Locked Unstable Resonator Rare-Gas Halide Discharge Laser of Narrow Linewidth and High Spatial Quality," IEEE Journal of Quantum Electronics, Vol. QE-16, No. 2, February 1980 (see FIG. 1, page 236 for electrode attachment).
All of the foregoing approaches to electrode replacement require a substantial amount of time to loosen and tighten screws. Moreover, the third alternative necessitates repeated breaking of seals thereby increasing the likelihood of leaks and further adversely affecting serviceability. The second alternative requires a long opening in the laser shell inasmuch as the electrodes are long (e.g., 20" or more) resulting in diminution of structural rigidity and strength of the laser shell which is an especially critical problem in pressurized lasers. Also, larger openings generally are more difficult to seal than the smaller ones.
This invention is directed to an improved electrode construction which overcomes the disadvantages mentioned above.